Will Formula 1 be rocked by an earthquake? According to “auto motor und sport”, two teams are said to have exceeded the budget limit of 148.6 million dollars last year – including Red Bull. The crucial question that arises is: Does the Max Verstappen racing team have an unauthorized advantage in the 2021 World Cup fight against Lewis Hamilton provided? If so, the consequences could be enormous.
The media report coincides with information from RTL/ntv. It is therefore true that two teams did not keep to the budget cap last season: Aston Martin and Red Bull. One of the two teams is said to have even clearly torn the limit.
The world automobile association FIA wants to make the result of the “audit” for 2021 public next week. According to the BBC, however, the FIA does not want to comment further on the subject until the investigation is complete. The matter is highly explosive.
The dilemma for the rule-keepers: There is no clearly defined penalty in the event that a team spends more money than allowed. In this way, the enforcers of the rules wanted to prevent the racing teams from making a cost/benefit analysis of the amount by which exceeding the limit could be worthwhile in relation to the penalty. According to the regulations, exceeding five million dollars is considered a “minor violation”. In the paddock, it is assumed that this will be punished with a fine.
Speaker reacts in Singapore
“The FIA is currently finalizing the assessment of the 2021 financial data submitted by all Formula 1 teams,” said a spokesman at the Singapore Grand Prix. Alleged violations of the financial regulations would “if necessary be dealt with in accordance with the formal procedure set out in the regulations,” it said accordingly vaguely.
At Mercedes, however, they cook. Tenor: We lost the Drivers’ Championship in Abu Dhabi because of a controversial safety car decision. Unlike Red Bull, we stuck to the budget rules. We are the fools.
No wonder the Silver Arrows, but also Ferrari, are now busy. According to “auto motor sport”, the two F1 superpowers estimate the benefit of five million dollars in extra development with up to half a second on the asphalt.
“If there is evidence that Red Bull deliberately exceeded the budget, it’s like an engine that is too big or an illegal wing,” explained “ORF” expert Alexander Wurz in Singapore.
Does Verstappen have to worry about his world title?
What penalties should Red Bull, which spoke of “pure speculation” in a first statement, expect? This is where it gets vague. If the team deliberately turned on the money tap, as von Wurz questions, the FIA must investigate and possibly set a precedent. Teams that go over the limit by more than $5 million will face penalties greater than a fine anyway. Sanctions such as a subsequent deduction of points or a downgrade in the World Cup are conceivable.
So does Max Verstappen have to tremble for his first title retrospectively? In any case, Mercedes will take a very close look at the official results of last year’s budget check – and could take the case to the sports court. It is unlikely that the Dutchman will actually be deprived of the World Cup.
In the past, for team offences, even serious ones, it was the teams and not the drivers who were penalized. For example, in the McLaren and Ferrari espionage scandal in 2007. At that time, McLaren obtained secret Ferrari documents. The racing team had to pay a fine of 100 million dollars and lost all points in the Constructors’ Championship. Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso were allowed to keep their points.